Hong Kong braces for protests over Christmas holidays
This week's protests follow a weekend of rallies, including one on Sunday, which ended in chaotic clashes between black-clad, masked demonstrators, who kicked and beat police officers
By REUTERSPolice passes a burning barricade to break up thousands of anti-government protesters during a march billed as a global "emergency call" for autonomy, in Hong Kong, China November 2, 2019(photo credit: REUTERS/THOMAS PETER)
Hong Kong is gearing up for demonstrations over Christmas week with protesters planning events in districts across the city, including in prime shopping malls, the latest in more than six months of unrest.This week's protests follow a weekend of rallies, including one on Sunday, which ended in chaotic clashes between black-clad, masked demonstrators, who kicked and beat police officers, hurling bricks and glass at them. Police retaliated with bursts of pepper spray and one officer pulled out a gun towards a crowd but did not fire, according to Reuters witnesses and Cable Television.Protests planned throughout the week include evening demonstrations in five malls on Christmas eve. A countdown rally is also planned near the city's harbor front in the bustling Tsim Sha Tsui shopping district.Protesters are also planning an event called "Suck the Christmas" on Christmas Day where they are expected to protest in different districts according to notices on social media.Earlier on Sunday, more than 1,000 people rallied calmly in support of China's ethnic Uighurs, who have been detained en masse in camps in China's northwestern Xinjiang region.The protests, which started in June, have pushed Hong Kong's economy into recession. Retailers and businesses have been hit hard as tourists stay away amid transport disruptions.The demands of protesters regard the island's independence from China. The protests started over a now-withdrawn extradition bill that would have allowed people to be sent to mainland China for trial but rapidly evolved into calls for full democracy, posing the biggest populist challenge to Chinese President Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012.
